Contributed by Jyothi Jain
What are thoughts? The past and future brought into the present? A cocktail of fears, beliefs, desires, identities served on a non-stop conveyor belt? Ever wondered where your first thought came from? Where do your thoughts go? Why do few thoughts transform into this hurricane or a self repeating prophecy?
I know! So many questions.. But a question is where the fun begins (and ends I suppose - there are no definitive answers, are there now?) Holding these questions close to us - opens up channels within. Something shifts!
Why am I writing this? Well, I happened to read a dialogue by J Krishnamurti and it got me ‘thinking’. Yes, I was thinking about thoughts and was very amused by the whole experience! I am no expert and have no answers. Just ruminations and more questions - so be warned if you choose to read on 🙂
We have experiences in life which then become knowledge which we gain. This knowledge is stored as a memory and this very memory forms the basis of thought. Think about it!
In that sense thought is always old - stale - dead! If one digs deeper one realises that our thought is the collective experience → knowledge → memory of human beings from thousands of years. We are second hand beings (prisoners even) - full of other people’s knowledge!
Now if we view this from another dimension - experience. Our experience (which I would like to remind you is the great grandmother of thought) is so very limited. Restricted by our conditioning, fears, desires, prejudice and beliefs - so how can our thoughts be anything more than fragmented images continually projected onto the screens of our minds?
We have established that thought is always, under all circumstances, limited. Let’s go one step ahead - thought is the mother of action (yes, I love mind maps and this family tree is quite intriguing indeed!). We are always told to watch our actions - do not hurt others, do not tell a lie, do this, don’t do that. Actions are just a manifestation of some of our thoughts. Sometimes we may be thinking something and doing something else just to conform to societal norms or other's expectations. So what is more important to observe - thoughts or actions?
If we do want to truly understand our thoughts - where do we begin? Our relationships are thoughts in action! Relationship is a process of self-revelation - of self-knowledge.They are mirrors of our thoughts. Are we truly in a relationship or do we love a self-created image of the other? So if we can truly inquire into our closest relationships (with other human beings, animals, nature, objects etc) they will throw light on our own conflicts, contradictions and conditioning!
All of life is relationship. To ‘be’ is to be related – otherwise you have no existence.
– J Krishnamurti
Whew! Yes - you deserve a break now. I leave you with a few more questions - sorry! 🙂
Can there be perception devoid of memory?
Is love a constructed thought? Or can there be love which is not born of memory?
What happens when there is a cessation of thought?
The mind is afraid not of the unknown, but of losing the known.
– J Krishnamurti
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